Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Workers Local 1096 v. National Labor Relations Board

The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Workers Union (“the Union”) seeks review of an enforcement order by the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) declaring that Bud Antle, Inc., the employer, did not violate the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”), 29 U.S.C. § 158 (a)(1) and (3), when, after a fourteen-year lockout, it delayed reinstatement of returning employees by approximately one month and it failed to offer the returning employees the same overtime opportunities available to other employees during a four-week retraining period. Given the unique circumstances of this case, notably the unusually long duration of the lockout, we conclude that the NLRB’s decision was supported *1093 by substantial evidence, and we deny the petition.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Bud Antle processes and distributes lettuce and other vegetables out of three refrigerated warehouses in California and Arizona. In June 1989, Bud Antle and the Union began negotiating for a new labor contract. When negotiations failed to produce a new agreement, the employees began an economic strike. In response, Bud Antle locked out its union employees and hired temporary replacements. The lockout continued for…